Three companies from Serbia ready to join EMAS III

BELGRADE - Three companies from Serbia stand ready to join the Eco-Management and Audit Scheme EMAS III, an EU environmental protection management system that allows participation by companies from countries outside the EU, Secretary of State at the Serbian Ministry of Agriculture and Environmental Protection Stana Bozovic said Thursday.

Not a single company from Serbia has been registered with EMAS yet, but Galenika Phytotherapy, TRS Europe and Gorenje Valjevo expressed willingness to join it, Bozovic said at a meeting in the Serbian Chamber of Commerce discussing introduction of this standard.

Bozovic pointed out that under negotiating Chapter 27, Serbia had an obligation to enforce EU environmental protection standards and that it should adopt a complete set of European regulations in that area by 2018.

It will cost very much, but we cannot give it up, because EU standards will improve the quality of life for people in Serbia, she said.

Richard Masa of the EU Delegation to Serbia said that European ecology standards were very strict and EU member states were spending one-fourth of their funds to prevent their violation.

He explained that the accession to EMAS was voluntary and that it implied standardization in 20 areas.

EMAS includes the environmental management system requirements of the ISO 14001 standard and also some other requirements, and countries should therefore incorporate into their legislation specific incentives for companies that have adopted the scheme, said Dragana Petrovic, a consultant in the EMAS joining project.

EMAS is aimed at ensuring good environmental and financial performance through a systematic framework that can also make an organization competitive, she...